1. Field of the Invention
The present invention is broadly concerned with an improved fermentation process wherein the time required to complete fermentation of food ingredient substrates to produce a comestible product is materially reduced. More particularly, the invention is concerned with a fermentation method which is improved by the addition of an oxygen-reactive enzyme into a fermentation system, which added enzyme is not naturally generated by virtue of the fermentation process, so as to accelerate the activity of fermentative microorganism(s) present therein. The invention is applicable to virtually any fermentation system, such as those used in the production of fermented liquid, semisolid and solid dairy products (e.g., milks, yogurts and cheeses), fermented meat, cereal-based, yeast-raised products and alcoholic beverages.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Food fermentation is a result of microbial activity, usually anaerobic, on suitable substrates under controlled or uncontrolled conditions resulting in the production of desirable foods or beverages that are characteristically more stable, palatable, and/or nutritious than the starting food ingredient substrates. Generally speaking, starting food ingredient substrates are inoculated with microorganism(s) and are incubated under regulated conditions of time, temperature and pH. Fermentation can be a single-culture process wherein only a single type of microorganism is employed, such as in wine, beer and bread-making, single-culture fermented dairy products, and vinegar production. Alternately, mixed culture (either pure or naturally occurring) fermentation is also widely practiced and generally involves a controlled mixture of bacteria or bacteria with a combination of yeast and mold. A common example of such processes is the production of yogurt and many types of cheeses.
The history of food fermentation has generally paralleled developments in microbiology and food microbiology. Traditionally, many foods were prepared by fermentation, but the reasons behind success or failure of the processes were not known. After Pasteur demonstrated that a specific microorganism (e.g., yeast) acting on a suitable substrate (grape juice) will produce a desirable product (wine), the science of food fermentation began. Now many food fermentation principles and practices are well established and food processors can predictably produce consistently good-quality fermented products.
The principal fermentation reactions in foods can be classed as those involving production of lactic, propionic, citric, butyric or acetic acids, as well as alcoholic and gassy fermentations. As might be expected, many fermentation systems are highly specific in terms of the microorganisms employed as well as in culturing conditions.
In many commercial fermentation operations, incubation time is the most critical determinant of overall production schedules. To give but one example, the fermentation of yogurt typically involves an incubation time on the order of 5 hours. If this time could be materially reduced, it would represent a significant financial advantage to the yogurt processor, both in terms of actual processing time and in requirements for mixing and holding equipment. Similarly, incubation time reductions would be similarly important in a vast array of commercial fermentation operations.